


The Eyes that Capture the Soul

by Annariel



Series: Fairy Tales of Primeval [3]
Category: Primeval
Genre: Evil Cats, F/M, Fae & Fairies, Magic, Possession
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-14
Updated: 2015-05-23
Packaged: 2018-03-30 13:39:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,659
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3938830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annariel/pseuds/Annariel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A mysterious anomaly opens on the remote Scottish island of Cenca which stubbornly refuses to close.  At the ARC Jess struggles to manage the logistics of getting supplies to the team as storms sweep across the Highlands.  Meanwhile Becker is forced to criss-cross the island between the small harbour and the stone circle where the anomaly is located.  Quietly and largely unnoticed, something far stranger than a rip in time is happening.  The legend of Cat Sidhe is about to come to life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to fredbassett for beta-reading and clea2011 for the [image](http://www.dennis-sellers.com/artchallenge/tyndrum.png) which inspired the story.
> 
> This was inspired by an entry in the primeval_denial art prompt challenge in 2013. I knew as soon as I saw clea's picture that I wanted to write something for it, but it took me 18 months to find a plot and then another six to write it!! It fits in with my [faeryland series](http://annariel.dreamwidth.org/30303.html) but is intended to stand alone.

The anomaly dominated the view as the ARC helicopters approached the small outer Hebridean island of Cenca. Its light shone out from between the uprights of the Ring of Caitri and illuminated the tops of the cliffs.

Heavy drops of rain were just starting to fall as Abby left the chopper. She ran across a springy mix of grass and heather to get clear of the noise and the rotors, and was glad of the fleece-lined jacket she'd put on before leaving the ARC. Captain Becker and Private Lacey were just ahead of her and she was vaguely aware of Connor to her right.

Once she was clear, she paused to take in their surroundings. The sky was a threatening vista of roiling storm clouds against the final rays of a red sunset. Behind the chopper the dark waters of the Atlantic churned with the oncoming storm. The sheer drop of the cliff face into the seas below only emphasised the wildness of weather and location. The second chopper, with the rest of the soldiers, had landed a short distance away along the same flat grassy clifftop and, through the gloom, she could see black clad figures jumping out and running across the ground towards her.

Abby turned around slowly, taking her time to assess the situation. The tall pointed stones of the Ring of Caitri stood atop a low rise ahead of them, the anomaly in its centre. Behind it rose Ben Sidhe, a weirdly lop-sided mountain with a long flat ridge leading up to a peak. 

There was only one village on Cenca, huddled around a sheltered bay in the south west. The Ring of Caitri stood proud on a small promontory to the north. From where she was standing Abby could see only sea, sky, the mountain and the stones all threatening to plunge into darkness at any moment. In sunlight the place must be spectacular. Abby shivered and pulled up her hood. The weather was cold, wet and windy.

"Bit miserable, isn't it," Connor shouted over the wind and the chopper engines.

"It's going to get worse as well. There's a storm predicted for later."

"With luck we'll be long gone by then." Connor hefted the suitcase that contained the anomaly locking device and set off towards the stone circle.

"Hopefully," Abby muttered to herself as she followed him.

It had been nearly eight hours since the anomaly alarm had first sounded back at the ARC. Abby was sure she wasn't the only person whose heart had sunk in dismay when the location was identified as a small Scottish island. Jess had been off duty and a new recruit, Emma Chan, was manning the detector. Emma appeared calm and efficient but it had still taken her a while to work out the best way to get a team up there. The best way had turned out to be by two Lynx helicopters supplied by the army with four pilots who could take turns flying them. If Abby hadn't been fretting about the delay it would have been amusing watching Lester having quiet conniptions about the expense as Emma outlined the plan. Even with the helicopters it had taken five hours to get to Cenca, via two refuelling stops, one in Cumbria and another at a small airstrip near Oban on the Scottish mainland. 

At least now, thanks to a shift change at the ARC, Jess was running the show. "What's the situation?" Abby asked her over the comms. Abby could see the soldiers fanning out around the stones in the gloom.

Jess's voice crackled faintly for a second or two and then the signal strengthened and her voice echoed loudly in Abby's ear. "Becker says they can't see any tracks at the anomaly, though you may want to take a second look. The Met Office has let me into their prediction system, so I'm watching that storm front. We'd like to get you out in the next half hour if possible. The pilots don't think the choppers will be safe on the cliff top once the storm hits and they are not keen on flying if the weather gets much worse than this."

"We don't really control the timetable you know," Abby said.

"I know, but I'm just letting you know the situation. I've managed to get in touch with a B&B in Ormchan, the village, so you'll have somewhere to go if the choppers have to leave without you."

"Thanks!"

Abby collected a torch from one of the team's kit bags and walked between the stones. She shone the torch at the ground and was careful where she stepped until she was standing directly in front of the anomaly. Then she systematically scanned around its base. She couldn't spot any tracks, but the ground had enough grass and springy heather on it that it was possible something could have got through unnoticed.

"And locking!" Connor said. 

Abby looked up in time to see the locking beam shoot out and enclose the anomaly in an impenetrable shell. It hung there calmly for a moment or two, then visibly pulsed.

"That's not normal is it?" Abby asked.

"No," Connor said.

The anomaly pulsed again and then gently folded outwards once more.

"That's not good," Becker said.

"I'll try again," Connor said.

Abby watched as Connor tried again and then resigned herself to the fact this was going to continue to be a complicated and difficult shout. 

"I'm guessing we're going to need that B&B," she told Jess.

* * *

Becker frowned as he watched Connor wrestling with the locking device. He mentally reviewed the logistics of their situation. It was dark and he could feel the wind picking up force. Overhead the stars were obscured by clouds.

"We can't stay here too long. It's too exposed." Callum Wells was one of the chopper pilots that had flown them up from the ARC. He was a stocky sandy-haired man with a sprinkling of grey at the temples and a tanned and weathered face. They'd worked with him before to reach inaccessible anomalies quickly. Becker knew that, when necessary, Callum was prepared to take reasonable risks. If he said they couldn't stay long then it wasn't because he was being over-cautious.

"How much time do you reckon?" Becker asked.

"It's a bad gale they're expecting. I don't want to be flying in it, but we can't risk leaving the choppers on the edge of this cliff either. We can give you a couple of hours tops maybe, but we'd be happier to be gone in one, half an hour would be even better."

Becker grimaced. Fortunately, the soldiers' fatigues were heavy and warm and they'd all donned waterproofs. However, he could tell that neither Connor nor Abby were really dressed to spend a long time out at night in a storm. He might need to send them back in the chopper and if that happened there was no chance of getting the anomaly closed until the morning.

"Did we pack any tents or any food?" he asked Jess. 

They were in the middle of bloody nowhere. If they were going to stay to watch the anomaly then they were going to need a little more than waterproof clothes and a couple of chocolate bars. He made a mental note to review response procedures once they got back. They were ill-equipped for a remote anomaly that couldn't be dealt with quickly.

"Given it's the middle of nowhere, you could leave it be and come back in the morning," Callum suggested.

"This island is inhabited, I'd rather not risk something getting lose on it."

"I'm getting something sorted," Jess said. "It may be a bit basic but you should be able to leave a small team to guard the anomaly."

Becker smiled to himself. Of course Jess would have been ahead of him on the logistics. He had no idea where she was going to magic up camping gear on a Scottish island in the middle of a gale, but if anyone could manage it, Jess could.

"You should ask that girl out," Callum said suddenly and Becker looked up to see the man had temporarily disabled his headset.

"What?"

"I said you should ask her out. You've got the silliest grin on your face just at the thought she might send someone out here with a tent for you."

"She's a friend," Becker objected and he knew it sounded a little feeble.

"Put everyone out of your misery," Callum said. "It isn't pretty watching a grown man pine."

* * *

An hour and a half later Abby watched glumly as the two choppers departed to find a safer place to ride out the storm somewhere on the mainland. Connor was still pacing around the anomaly, taking readings and trying to get it to close, but so far he'd had no success. Watching him, Abby could tell he was beginning to succumb to the cold; his hands were fumbling with the various measuring devices. Sooner, rather than later, she was going to have to force him to leave the anomaly and get somewhere warm and dry. It wasn't just Connor. The rain had already soaked through her trousers which clung soggily to her legs, though the waterproofing on her jacket was keeping the worst of it off her upper half.

"I've arranged for some waterproof trousers and spare clothes to get delivered to the B&B," Jess reported.

"Where from?" Becker asked. "This place is the arse end of beyond. I looked it up. It has a population of 124."

"There's a general store in Ormchan. It isn't big but they have a lot of stuff for emergencies. I get the impression the WI have got involved as well."

Abby felt an involuntary shiver run through her and mental warning signs flashed up that she was getting too cold. "How do we get to the village?" she asked Jess.

"Someone called Donnie McLeod is coming out to meet you. He'll be bringing some supplies for whoever is left on guard as well."

"That'll be me, Blade and Spidey," Becker interrupted, his gaze sweeping over the soldiers at the site. 

"I think you should go to Ormchan actually. There's a Colonel Duncan who seems like some kind of de facto village headsman or something. He's being OK about things, great in fact. He's directing everything over there like a military op. But he's a little prickly. Some respectful yes sir, no sir, type stuff, not to mention meeting the person in charge on the ground, might help keep everything nice and easy," said Jess.

Becker's head moved back so he gazed at the sky, as if in entreaty. Abby smiled quietly to herself. Becker gave off the appearance of being all terribly correct spit and polish but she knew he hated the more PR aspects of the job. 

She nudged his arm. "I imagine you can always come back after you've pressed the flesh a bit."

Becker shook his head. "No, let's organise our shifts properly. Blade, Spidey, Finn! Come here! I want to discuss first watch."

Becker disappeared into conversation with the three soldiers.

"Frankly, for once, I'll take his over-inflated sense of chivalry and be glad it isn't me," Lacey murmured in Abby's ear.

Abby nodded. "I'm not dressed for this weather, nor is Connor. How about you guys?"

"Not so bad, but I hope this contact of Jess's brings some kind of shelter otherwise it's going to be rough on them."

According to the map, a single track road wound around the base of Ben Sidhe, stopping in a small car park about a hundred yards from the Ring of Caitri. Abby assumed the ancient monument must be one of the island's major tourist attractions. As she watched, a flash of headlights appeared in the darkness and then vanished again. 

"Here comes the cavalry," Abby said.

She picked her way towards the car park, using the torch to help her see. Once they were out of the immediate vicinity of the anomaly everything was darkness and shadows. She arrived just as a Land Rover pulled in. An elderly man with a shock of white hair and a prominent beaked nose got out of it.

"You the hush hush mainland army types?" he asked.

"That's us, yes," Abby answered with a grin.

"Eh, lass, you look soaked, get into the landy."

"I'll just get my husband first," Abby waved her torch in Connor's direction. "Otherwise we'll never get him away from here."

The man took a long shrewd look at the anomaly hanging in the middle of the stone circle. "He trying to figure out yon sparking light."

"Something like that," Abby agreed trying to maintain some vagueness.

"Don't worry about me, lass. I'm ex-Regiment. I worked with the Colonel during the first Gulf War and then retired up here with him. That's why your wee operations officer asked me to come out here. I know when to keep my mouth shut and not ask too many questions."

He smiled again and Abby smiled back. She could tell he was desperately curious but he felt reassuring. She didn't feel like he would press them for information. "I'll just go and get him."

Becker marched up to them and shook Donnie's hand. Abby left them to discuss logistics and went to collect Connor.

"Well?" she asked.

"It doesn't make any sense."

"I gathered. Do we know what's on the other side?"

Connor shook his head. "Blade stuck his head through but said it was just a dry sandy surface and rocks. No sign of wildlife and not much by way of flora. He said there were some grasses but that only puts us any time from the Cretaceous onwards. If we had a paleobotanist on team they might tell us more, but we don't so..." Connor shrugged.

"You need to get dry. If it's still here tomorrow you can carry on studying it then."

"It won't be here tomorrow. They never are." Connor pulled out a magnetometer and prodded clumsily at the buttons. "There must be something I'm missing."

Abby caught hold of his hand and felt the tremors running through it. His jacket was soaked and Abby realised suddenly that it was just a cloth hoody. "Connor, didn't you bring a waterproof?"

"What?"

"You're soaking. No wonder you're shivering so much."

"I'm OK."

"No you're not, lad. Get into my Land Rover now." Donnie had come up behind her and spoke with an air of irrefutable authority.

"But."

"No ifs, no buts. I've lived out here thirty years, on and off, and if you don't get into my Land Rover now, I will carry you there in person. I've seen too many sassenach idiots with hypothermia. It lost its attraction a couple of decades ago."

"I'm not..." Connor started.

"Conn, you are. I can feel you shivering. You've taken a load of readings. Maybe something will come to you if you sit in the quiet with a laptop for bit."

Connor's head twitched, but she could see he was considering the argument.

"Connor! Land Rover! Now!" Becker ordered.

Connor gave an exaggerated sigh but allowed Abby to lead him to the Land Rover. She could see that a couple of low two man tents had been pitched in the grass between the stones. They didn't look like much, but would presumably give some shelter to the soldiers remaining to watch the anomaly. She squeezed into the back of the Land Rover next to Connor. There was a third row of seats and Lacey climbed to sit behind Abby and Connor. Ditzy, the team medic, scrambled into the back beside her.

"Will they be all right here all night in a storm?" Abby asked Ditzy.

"Should be. They've weathered worse before and Donnie's brought all the right kit with him. I'm not worried about hypothermia unless they do something stupid."

"I could stay then?" Connor's head came up.

"No, you're too cold already by the look of things."

Connor huffed quietly but shivered again. "I was OK until I got in here."

"That's because you've stopped moving," Ditzy said. "Oi! Donnie, any chance you have some heating in this rust bucket?"

Donnie marched up to the window and tossed some keys in to them. "Watch your tongue, young man. This rust bucket, as you call her, is far more suitable to island life than yon fancy Toyota Prius' or whatever you young people drive these days."

Ditzy grinned back at Donnie before walking round and climbing into the front. He started the engine and turned up the fan. Abby felt herself relax as the warm air began to circulate. Moments later Becker and Donnie got into the Land Rover as well, and they set off around the hill to Ormchan, and away from the stone circle.

* * *

The B&B was a squat, squarish building covered in white plaster. The village of Ormchan clung to a slope leading down to a small harbour and the B&B faced out over the bay. Its upper windows looked out over the houses below it. A faded red sign in front said "Seaview".

The driving rain hadn't let up at all as they drove across the island. The Land Rover's windscreen wipers had been working at full speed and, even so, Abby felt she only got brief glimpses of the narrow road in the glare of the headlights and then a sheet of water covered the window once more. 

"Foul weather you've brought with you," Donnie said.

"Unusually so?" Abby couldn't help asking. Exposure to the anomalies had left her automatically suspicious of unexplained phenomena.

"Not really. Ever heard of the equinoctial gales? 'Tis the season for them."

The wind hit Abby as she stepped out of the Land Rover, almost picking her off her feet. She hurried for the front door of the B&B blinking rainwater out of her eyes. It opened before she got there. Someone had obviously been keeping an eye out.

"You'll be the government people," commented a warm Lancashire voice.

Abby blinked in surprise. The lady in front of her must have been in her thirties. She was wearing a multi-coloured cardigan and her hair was a startling shade of pink.

"Come in! Come in!" the woman said. "Let's get everyone indoors."

They were ushered into a sitting room filled with mismatched sagging armchairs and a friendly fire burning in the grate. There were two other people in the room already. A tall grey-haired man with military bearing who Abby immediately pegged as Colonel Duncan and a tough looking young woman, with close cropped hair and a squarish face, wearing wellies and an Arran jumper.

In the round of introductions that followed Abby established that the pink-haired lady was Annie Fairfax (an 'incomer'). She owned and ran the B&B, kept hens and served home-cooked organic food. The woman in the wellies was Shona Duncan, the Colonel's daughter and, among other things, the local mountain rescue contact. Abby guessed the ARC team was appropriating her entire stock of emergency clothing and equipment.

"Luckily we're out of tourist season. I'm not aware of any walkers on the island at the moment."

"They wouldn't be out in this weather even if they were, would they?" Connor asked.

Lacey audibly snorted and Abby recalled that the special forces team's love of caving had got them involved in a few mountain rescue operations from time to time. 

"You'd be surprised," Shona said blandly. "We've got two Munros here. We get all sorts who want to climb every Munro there is. If their stay here is coming to an end and they've not managed to get up them yet, well they don't necessarily behave very sensibly."

"Half these tourist climbers don't know what they're doing," the Colonel agreed.

"I don't suppose we've created a very good impression either, sir. We couldn't bring much with us on the choppers and we weren't expecting the need to stay," Becker said.

"Your men out at the stone circle have what they need?" asked the Colonel.

"Yes, sir. As long as the tents don't blow away, they've got some shelter and dry clothes and we had those tents fastened down pretty securely."

"I gather it's some unexplained atmospheric phenomenon."

"Need to know, sir. You know that."

"I suspect it's..." Connor started, obviously hoping to elaborate on the story. Abby trod gently on his foot and ignored the indignant, "Ow!"

"We could really use a change of clothes," she said. "Jess said there were spares."

"We've put them upstairs in the rooms. I'll show you the way," Annie said.

Abby left Becker to smooth ruffled ex-military feathers and followed Annie up the stairs, dragging Connor along behind her. Halfway up she paused to examine a stone cat statue placed on a small occasional table. The B&B was loaded with knick-knacks but this one struck her as different. The lines were sleek and menacing and it lacked any sense of twee.

"That's Cat Sidhe," said Annie spotting her gaze.

"Cat Sidhe?"

"Scottish legend, always been particularly popular out here. Ben Sidhe is named after him, and possibly the Ring as well, depending which linguist you talk to. That's a reproduction of one of the statues in the old manor house."

"What's the legend of Cat Sidhe?" Connor asked.

"It's a fairy cat, supposed to have nine thanes that follow it. They steal the souls of the dead unless you distract it during the wake. Which is why you have to make sure wakes are good rowdy affairs with plenty to drink." Annie smiled humourously. "You also have to make sure no fires burn in rooms with the dead because fires attract the King of Cats."

"So wakes have to be drunken but cold?" Abby asked.

"Pretty much, though the locals seem to have decided that central heating doesn't count as a fire."

"Pleasant legend. A cat that steals the souls of the dead," Connor said.

"Most authentic legends have a touch of the dark in them. Come on. It's this way to your room."


	2. Chapter 2

Private Lacey sank into an under-stuffed armchair with an unfortunate floral design and watched as Colonel Duncan and his daughter expertly grilled Becker. Donnie McLeod helped himself to a bottle from a cabinet and poured out what looked like a generous dram of whisky. He lifted up a second glass and raised his eyebrows at Lacey. She shook her head subtly.

"You're not still on duty are you? If your Captain has any sense it'll be eight hours before he puts you on shift again."

Becker glanced at his watch and looked across at them. "You can have a small dram. Like he says, we'll work eight hour shifts. However that only gives you about six hours before we need to head off again."

"Thanks, sir."

Lacey accepted the glass from Donnie and took a cautious sip. She'd never been that fond of whisky, but she'd been in the forces far too long to show any sign of baulking at the offer of spirits. The burning liquid slid down her throat and she sank back a little further into the armchair.

"Who's the lassie on the phone?" Donnie asked. "I can tell you she sounded small but fierce to me. I wouldn't like to cross her."

"Jess is our operations manager. She's one of the best."

"So I gathered," said the Colonel. "You lot may have turned up here dressed for a picnic on the South Downs, but I could tell your young lady had her priorities straight."

"She certainly gave me a pretty comprehensive list of equipment you were going to need. Knew her stuff," Shona commented.

Lacey smiled to herself. She wondered where Jess had got the list from because she very much doubted Jess had known much about camping on a remote Scottish island in a gale when she had got up that morning.

Annie Fairfax came back into the room. "I've got your friends settled. They should be down in a minute. Miss Parker said she was going to place an order at the local chippie for you and get it delivered at nine."

Lacey glanced at her watch and realised the food would be with them in about 10 minutes.

"That will be our cue to go," said Shona.

"Keep in touch and give us a call if you need anything," the Colonel said.

Donnie sighed and levered himself up out of his chair. "Same here. I assume you'd like me here around 3am to take the next shift up there."

"That's very good of you," Becker said.

"I may have left the army but that doesn't mean I'm no longer prepared to step up if needed."

"We all are," said the Colonel and Shona nodded.

Lacey wondered if the Colonel's daughter was ex-military as well. She hadn't introduced herself as such, but she had something of the soldier in her bearing even so.

* * *

Private Peter Parker, inevitably known as Spidey to his fellow soldiers, huddled in the lee of one of the great stones and glared at the anomaly which still twinkled brightly in the centre of the circle. They were on two and a half hour rotating watches, one man watching the anomaly and the other two in the tent keeping warm. It wasn't ideal by a long shot, but given the weather and the manpower, it made sense. Spidey had got the second shift and he'd been standing in the cold now for over an hour while the anomaly did nothing much in particular.

"How are you doing?" Blade crawled out of one of the tents and carried a mug of coffee over to him.

"Surviving. I'm grateful for the waterproofs." Spidey had seen the way Connor was shivering when he'd been taken away and was thankful that there had been all-weather clothes in the chopper.

"It's going to be a rough night."

"Thanks for the coffee."

"We've supplies for endless cups of coffee and there's some packet soup as well."

"You said it was dry on the other side of that thing," Spidey said a little wistfully.

"Dry but probably teaming with unfriendly wildlife. Besides, do you really want to run the risk of getting trapped there?"

Spidey shrugged. "Not really, just a thought."

Finn came out of the tent. "I can't believe you two are gossiping in this weather."

"It's not so bad," Spidey said drily. "I reckon I can see at least half a metre, and I can stand straight as long as I'm downwind of the stones."

Finn laughed. 

At that moment a high pitched sound floated on the wind.

"What the ever-loving fuck was that?" Spidey asked.

"Watch that anomaly! Finn, get your rifle!" Blade ordered.

Finn was already heading for the second tent which they were using to keep the extra gear dry. Spidey sighted his own rifle on the anomaly, while Blade had unholstered a pistol and was also pointing it at the shimmering light.

The howl sounded again. It was definitely coming from the other side.

"What do you reckon?" Spidey asked. "Raptor?"

"I've no idea, but they're never friendly."

There was a sudden flare of light. Spidey blinked involuntarily. When he opened his eyes, it was as if rays of moonlight shone from the anomaly, illuminating the whole area around the stones. Along the moonlit beams raced the ghostly forms of giant cats.

Blade opened fire and Spidey followed suit but he wasn't surprised when the bullets passed straight through the things. One was heading right for him. Spidey kept firing in lieu of any better ideas and backed away slowly. The cat leaped straight for his chest.

* * *

Abby dreamed. 

She was in a strange desolate landscape, a dusty plain that stretched out endlessly, dominated by a low bright moon. A large black cat with a white patch on its forehead sat on a rocky outcrop above her and stared at her silently and thoughtfully. 

She was woken by heavy pounding on the door of her room and Connor's startled and sleepy response. 

"What?" she asked.

"We're needed at the anomaly site." It was Lacey's voice. "There's a man down."

Abby cursed as she scrambled out of the bed. "With you in five," she shouted.

She switched on the light, blinking in the sudden brightness and squinted at her watch. It was ten past two in the morning. Abby closed her eyes in resignation. Becker, Lacey and Ditzy would have been up in another hour anyway to take their turn watching the anomaly.

"The storm seems to have died down," Connor said.

The noises of howling gale and pounding rain that had sent her to sleep had indeed lulled. "That's good. Hopefully they can get the chopper in."

She pulled on her clothes of yesterday which had dried stiff and warm over the radiator. Then she grabbed the waterproof trousers and top that Shona had supplied and pulled them on as well.

"Do you think they'll be necessary?" Connor asked as he struggled into a pair of tight jeans that clearly hadn't completely dried out yet.

"Forecast was for a series of storms coming in one after the other. I'm not taking any chances."

Connor groaned and grabbed his waterproofs, then snatched up his laptop. "Do you think the anomaly is still open?" he asked.

Abby just shrugged. "We'll find out soon enough I've no doubt."

* * *

Becker, Lacey and Ditzy were all assembled in the B&B's living room. Everyone was subdued and quiet in the manner of people who had woken too early and expected a long day ahead.

"Donnie should be here with the Land Rover in about five minutes," Becker said.

"What's the situation?" Abby asked.

"Blade got through to the ARC about half an hour ago to say that Spidey was down. He wasn't clear if it was an animal attack or something else. Said he couldn't see any injuries but that Spidey appeared to be fitting."

"Fitting?" Abby asked.

Becker nodded. "Those were his words apparently."

"Could be some sort of poison, if he got bitten by something," Ditzy said.

"When was this?" Abby asked.

"About midnight I understand. They couldn't manage to contact anyone before that because of interference from the storm. Khan's on shift at the ARC at the moment. He's mobilising a chopper but the weather is still pretty bad. We will probably get to them first."

"Is the anomaly still open?" Connor asked.

"Bright and steady according to Khan. Do you have any progress on it?"

Connor's face fell. "Not really. I've got some ideas for more readings we can take but so far it doesn't seem particularly out of the ordinary."

"Particularly?" Becker queried.

Connor shrugged. "It doesn't seem at all out of the ordinary, apart from the fact that the thing won't lock."

A horn sounded out in the street. "That will be Donnie," Becker said.

* * *

The drive across the island in the dark was a silent affair. Abby peered out of the windows but the night was cloudy and there was nothing to be seen beyond the odd sheep caught in the headlights. Khan's voice faded in and out on the radio headsets as the vagaries of the mountains and the weather allowed the signal through.

"The helicopter has taken off from Oban. They'll be with you in half an hour. They're bringing more all weather gear with them and some extra monitoring equipment."

Abby felt it when the Land Rover pulled onto the rough track up to the stones and they started to bounce around. Then they finally stopped. Donnie kept the headlights on so they could see their way to the circle and the tents. Blade was already walking towards them, a tranquilliser rifle cradled in his arms.

"Report!" Becker shouted.

"We were woken up around midnight by the sound of Private Parker firing his weapon. When Finn and I got to him he was on the ground having some kind of fit. He's been delirious ever since."

"Around midnight?"

"Parker was my first priority. It was 12.07 when I checked my watch. We didn't manage to get through to anyone until 1.54."

"Where's Spidey?" Ditzy asked.

"That tent, Finn will show you."

Ditzy headed off.

"We checked the ground around, sir, but couldn't see anything that looked liked tracks."

"Abby, take a second look. Blade, show her where you found Spidey."

Abby followed Blade to the edge of the stone circle, next to one of the tents.

"Here?" she asked.

Blade nodded. "We found him on the ground."

Abby looked around. "He must have been standing in the lee of the stone, sheltering from the wind." She scanned the muddy earth. There was a mess of footprints, but it did look as though someone had stood next to the stone for some time. "Was someone with him?" she asked, spotting a second pair of standing prints.

"Not when whatever it was happened."

Abby crouched down, surveying the ground. She felt Blade just behind her, almost breathing down her neck. He was well inside her personal space but she supposed he was just worried about Spidey. She stood up again and took a pace or two forwards partly to put some distance between them again. Blade shadowed her.

"He must have fallen here," she said indicating a slight depression in the grass. She took a stride over it and turned quickly to face Blade so he couldn't stay breathing down her neck.

Blade's eyes widened for a moment and Abby had the briefest illusion that the pupils elongated like those of a cat. Then the moment was gone.

"Yes, that's where we found him," Blade said.

Abby turned again, suppressing the desire to run, and walked slowly towards the anomaly, scanning the ground at her feet with the torch and ignoring Blade's presence half a pace behind her.

"Anything?" he asked when she reached the edge of the anomaly.

She shook her head. "Nothing."

The sound of a helicopter approaching snapped her attention and she looked out in the direction of the sea. There was a light in the distance growing larger all the time.

"Looks like the ambulance is on its way," she said.

"Do you think we should move him?" Blade asked.

Abby frowned as she turned back to him. It was an odd question. "Not my call. Shall we go see what Ditzy has to say?"

In the torchlight Abby saw Blade's brow furrow slightly, then he nodded silently. She felt him close behind her all the way over to the tent. Becker was standing outside it.

"How's Spidey?" she asked as she walked up.

"Not making a lot of sense. We'll see what they can do for him back at the ARC."

Becker's mouth clamped shut in a tight line. The ARC was a long way away.

"Is it safe to move him?" Blade asked.

"Ditzy reckons so."

Their voices were drowned out by the sound of the helicopter coming in. The next few minutes were a rush of activity as the helicopter was unloaded and a stretcher was brought over to the tent.

"Doesn't seem like a lot of stuff," Abby couldn't help remarking, looking at the small pile of equipment being unloaded.

"There's a ferry coming in to the island early this afternoon," Khan broke in on her headset. "Miss Parker has arranged vehicles, and most of the equipment Connor asked for to be put onto them."

"Equipment?" Abby asked with a smile, glancing across at Connor.

"You'll also be getting some backup. Lester's authorised a second squad to watch the anomaly. By five o'clock tonight you'll be as well resourced as you could wish."

"And then the anomaly will close," Abby said ruefully.

"The King of Cats! The eyes that see in the dead of the night. He'll come to claim us all!"

Abby started at the sudden interruption to the conversation. Ditzy and a paramedic were carrying Spidey out of the tent on a stretcher. Becker was following behind them looking grim.

"The mice people are ever thus. We fight but we cannot prevail!"

"What is he saying?" Abby asked.

Ditzy caught her eyes and shook his head. "No idea. I've put as much sedative in him as I dare and it's not calming him down."

"Beware! Beware the King of Cats. The eyes that capture your soul. Beware! Beware!"

Abby watched as they loaded Spidey up into the chopper. "Apart from the delirium how is he?" she asked Ditzy as he returned.

"Burning up with some kind of fever. I couldn't find anything that looked like bite or sting marks, but it could be tiny."

"An insect?" Becker asked.

Ditzy shrugged. "Not impossible. We'll run a tox screen once he's back at the ARC. There's not a lot you can do here beyond keeping your eyes peeled. Requesting permission to travel with him, sir. I think he needs constant monitoring in this state."

"Agreed, permission granted."

Abby watched as Ditzy and Spidey vanished into the helicopter.

"Did you know the King of Cats is a local legend?" she asked Becker.

"Do you think he saw something?"

"I don't know. It's an odd coincidence if there isn't some connection between the legend and whatever happened to him."

"Did you find any tracks?" Becker asked.

Abby shook her head. "It's not the best ground but if something the size of a big cat came through, I'd expect to be able to tell."

Becker shook his head. "Keep your eyes peeled. I'm going to send Finn and Blade back to Ormchan with Donnie and we'll take over the watches here until the morning. Then we'll see what can be done."

* * *

Jess was woken up at 8am by a phone call from Naveed Khan.

"What's the emergency?" she asked blearily.

"Spidey's been injured in some way. We're flying him back to the ARC. He should be here in about an hour. I know you mentioned something about being related, so thought you would like to know."

Jess flopped back on the pillows and considered the situation. She should probably go in and see what was happening. "OK thanks, I'll be with you soon."

She looked at her watch again. She wasn't due on shift until 4pm but she was awake now and although she didn't know Spidey all that well, Khan was right that they were distant cousins. She should at least check up on him. If she was honest with herself she was also curious about the strange anomaly in Scotland and wanted to know how Becker and the rest of the team were coping. If she were in the ARC she would be able to keep an eye on things even if it wasn't technically her shift. She pulled herself out of bed and began sorting through her clothes.

When Jess arrived at the ARC, she stopped at her desk before going down to the infirmary to check up on the preliminary reports overnight and get a sense of what had happened. That way she wouldn't waste people's time with basic questions. She frowned over the brief medical notes Ditzy had sent from the helicopter. When Naveed had said Spidey was injured she had assumed a bite or claw injury, not some kind of illness. It also looked more serious than she had picked up over the phone. With a greater sense of anxiety and urgency, she hurried down to the medical centre.

When she reached the infirmary she could see Ditzy and a nurse standing at one of the beds. Even through the observation window Jess could see the way the body on the bed was thrashing around.

"Is it safe to go in?" she asked the technician at the door.

"Preliminary assessment suggests it's a toxin, not an infection. Through frankly we're all in the dark. No one's quarantined him, though, so, yes, you can go in if you want to take the risk," the man said.

Jess nodded and pushed open the door. She understood the concern. The ARC had protocols in place to cover various scenarios involving infection. If they'd not been invoked then there was a good chance she would be safe.

Ditzy glanced up as she walked in but turned immediately back to his patient. He looked tired and worn out. Jess did a quick mental calculation and decided Ditzy had had four hours sleep in the last twenty-four. She hoped someone had contacted one of the doctors the ARC kept on call. They had strapped Spidey's wrists down to the side of the bed and set up a drip, but Jess could see him straining to break free, the muscles in his neck standing out.

"The King of Cats is coming. He has chosen his host. The mice must beware. Ware! Ware!" he shouted.

"What's in the drip?" Jess asked.

"Broad spectrum antibiotic," Ditzy said without looking up.

"I thought it wasn't an infection."

"We don't know what the fuck it is and an antibiotic is something we can do while we wait for the blood work to come back. Hopefully then we'll know more."

"The mouse people must work together!" Spidey raved. Jess realised his eyes were fixed on her. "Jess, it all depends upon you. The Queen must act."

She reached out to place a reassuring hand on Spidey's arm. "It'll all be OK, Spidey... Peter. Don't worry, you're safe now."

He relaxed back slightly. "Only we can fight it. The legacy is ours. The King of the Cats and his nine thanes approach."

Jess looked helplessly at Ditzy who was looking at her thoughtfully.

"He seems calmer with you here. Do you know him? You have the same surname?"

"Only a little. We're third cousins or something. We didn't realise until we bumped into each other at a family wedding a few months back."

Ditzy nodded. "I wouldn't normally suggest it, but can you stay here? All the agitation isn't doing him any good."

"Blood pressure's reduced a bit," reported the nurse.

"Can you stay with him, Jess? The familiar face, or perhaps the connection with family, is calming him and at the moment there's precious little else we can do."

Jess nodded. "I'm not on duty until four so I can stay. But my condition is that you get some rest. Emma's on duty upstairs, check she's called someone."

"Don't worry, I gather Dr. Jones is on the way. I'm just waiting for her to arrive."

Jess smiled her understanding. Then she slipped her hand into Spidey's and felt his fingers grip hers tightly.

"Cat Sidhe is strongest in the night but he travels on moon beam and sun beam without preference. Beware, beware!"

* * *

Abby sat on a flat rock just outside the circle eating a cheese and pickle sandwich. It had been a frustrating morning. Nothing had come through the anomaly and brief sorties to the other side had simply confirmed Blade's description of a desolate sandy landscape. Abby had the oddest sense that it was familiar but couldn't pin the feeling down to anything specific. She was aware of being very tired. At Becker's insistence she had grabbed some snatches of sleep in one of the tents but she was looking forward to the arrival of the second team on the afternoon ferry and the chance for some uninterrupted sleep.

Connor had spent the morning crouched over his laptop or wandering around the anomaly with various instruments but she could tell he wasn't getting anywhere and had no worthwhile guesses about why it wouldn't close.

Mostly the wait was just boring, with the undertone of stress caused by not knowing why the anomaly wouldn't close, not knowing how Spidey was doing and not knowing what had caused his delirium. At least the sun was shining. It was still incredibly windy and apparently the forecast said there was another storm on the way but for the time being the whole area was bright, stark and beautiful.

The choppers called in to evacuate Spidey had brought two large military tents. Becker had amused himself getting them erected near the stone circle. They were big squat green lumps in the landscape but they were well pegged down and Abby could tell everyone left on watch would have a better night. Becker was hoping that the whole team could camp out by the anomaly. It would make organising shifts to watch the thing easier. Emma Chan reported that Matt, Emily, Lyle and a couple of special forces soldiers were driving north aiming to meet the ferry at Oban in the early afternoon. Meanwhile some SUVs and more equipment were being delivered from one of the Scottish army bases. Even with the extra manpower, though, it was going to be hard work maintaining enough eyes on the anomaly to keep Becker happy that nothing would get through.

Abby turned back to the anomaly and took another thoughtful bite on her sandwich. Suddenly the anomaly flared with a bright light as if channeling the sunshine through itself like a lens. Abby gasped as something looking vaguely like a cat made from light bounded towards her.

* * *

Jess felt a hand come down lightly on her shoulder and looked up to see Lester standing over her.

"How's he doing?" he asked.

Jess shook her head. "Not well. Dr. Jones says he's exhausted and the fever isn't getting any better."

"Ware the King of Cats," Spidey mumbled quietly his head thrashing from side to side.

"I gather there is no sign of infection nor any toxins. Dr. Jones isn't happy. I'm afraid I'm going to require anyone who has been in contact with him to stay at the ARC for the time being and remain in isolation."

Jess nodded in understanding. "You shouldn't be in here then."

"Funnily enough, I never seem to leave this place, and no one comes to speak to me if they can help it. It's only a precautionary measure. Jones thinks we would have heard of more cases by now if it was actually highly infectious."

"Ware, ware!" Spidey mumbled and then suddenly he jerked hard against the restraints. "The second wave!" he shouted.

Jess leaped to her feet as the heart monitor let out a sustained beep and Spidey collapsed back against the pillow.

"Spidey!" Jess cried.

She was about to lean over him when she got the strangest impression that there was a cat-like form climbing out of his chest. Something insubstantial made from light and smoke. She jerked backwards in surprise and found herself face to face with the image of a large cat. 

It leaped and she ducked instinctively.


	3. Chapter 3

"Jess?" Lester asked.

Jess whirled around. Lester was standing behind her a concerned look on his face.

"Did you see that?" she demanded, even as Dr. Jones and the other medics swarmed past her. The monitors around Spidey continued to let out long continuous alarms.

"See what?"

"That! That?" she tailed away, waving her hands. She didn't want to say `phantom cat'.

Lester put his hands gently on her shoulders and began to draw her away. The steady screech of the alarms continued.

"Oh God!" Jess muttered. "What am I going to tell his mum?"

Lester was already moving her out of the room. "I'll be contacting his mother. You won't have to break the news."

"But we're family."

"Ditzy said you were only distantly related. I don't think you have to shoulder this." Lester gazed down at her a look of detached concern on his face.

Jess strained to look back into the room. The medics were still darting around but she could tell that it was hopeless. She was caught by surprise when a sudden sob welled up inside her.

Lester patted her awkwardly on the back and then blinked slowly at her. For a moment she thought his pupils had turned into slits but then he looked normal again. "I have things I need to attend to," he said. "Will you be OK?"

Jess nodded mutely, looking back through the observation window. When she looked away again Lester had already gone.

* * *

Becker had been in a radio conversation with Emma Chan back at the ARC when he heard Abby's cry. Abandoning the discussion of logistics (and the faint irritation that Jess wasn't there and wasn't making it all simple) Becker snatched up his rifle and hurried out of the tent. 

Connor, Abby and Lacey were all standing within the stone circle facing towards the anomaly.

"Are you OK?" Becker asked.

They all turned to look at him with a slightly eerie coordination. Abby raised her hand and shielded her eyes so she could peer at him.

"Yes, we're fine. I thought I saw something but it was nothing."

Becker frowned at them. It hadn't sounded like nothing.

"Lacey?" he asked.

"Not a dicky bird," she shouted back. "I could check through the anomaly."

"No, don't. The fewer people that go through those things the happier I am."

They all stood there watching him for a bit until Becker gave up and headed back inside the tent to grapple with the complexities of shipping food and equipment out to a remote Scottish island for an uncertain period of time and with uncertain weather ahead. Jess, he thought darkly, would definitely have had it all organised for him.

* * *

Once the first shock was over, Jess was unsure what to do. While Spidey had been a relative, she had not been lying when she said that they had hardly known each other and, if anything, she felt embarrassed by the considerate attention of the medics. At a loose end, she wondered up to the central operations area and was surprised to find Lester sitting in her chair swearing at the keyboard.

"Where's Emma?" she asked.

"I sent her to take a coffee break. How difficult can this be?" Lester grumbled.

Jess snorted and was tempted to be annoyed with him but didn't have the energy. "What were you trying to do?" she asked.

Lester shook his head. "It's nothing. It can wait." He stood up and marched to his office.

Jess stared, puzzled, at his retreating back. Then looked down at the desk. It was covered in scrawled notes and she could tell that Emma had been trying to work out what supplies to send across to the island on the daily ferry. She felt a surge of sympathy for Becker. Emma was shaping up to be a good coordinator but still tended to want people to double check her decisions. While Becker maintained a good professional face she knew people who wanted their hand held every step of the way made him beat his head against a metaphorical wall.

Jess debated briefly giving Becker a call to see how he was managing and, if she was honest, just to talk things over with him a bit. She couldn't see a way to do it though that wouldn't look like she was trying to do Emma's job for her. If she was honest with herself she mostly felt talking to Becker would just be comforting, but she'd been trying to avoid appearing too hung up on him at work. It wasn't terribly professional and there was a reason work place relationships were notorious. She was a big girl and could cope with the death of a distant cousin on her own. Jess sighed, carefully walked away from the anomaly detector, and headed back for the rec room. At least there would be tea and biscuits there.

* * *

Becker was on his own glaring at the anomaly. Technically he was sharing a watch with Lacey but she'd taken to prowling around the stone circle, an oddly blank look on her face, so he'd sent her to make some coffee in the hopes it would break her out of whatever mental state she was in. Abby and Connor were, he hoped, catching up on some sleep in the tent.

"Becker?" Becker looked across to see Abby approaching him. He was a little surprised to see her up and about so soon but it was possible Connor woken up with some theory and then woken Abby to babble at her.

"What is it?"

"I just got a call from Lester, Donnie is on his way to take you down to meet the ferry."

Becker frowned. "What for? I'm sure Matt and Emily can manage to get themselves off a ferry and up to the stone circle by themselves?"

Abby shrugged. "I'm just relaying the message."

Becker glanced at the road that snaked around the sides of the nearby mountain. As if on cue Donnie's Land Rover appeared heading towards them. Becker suppressed his annoyance and began rearranging shifts in his head.

"Ask Donnie to wait a minute or two."

At least Jess was now on shift at the ARC. Becker decided to be thankful for small mercies. He patched through on his mike. "Jess, are you reading me?"

"Loud and clear," she said.

"What's this about going down to the ferry. Is there a problem with Matt and Emily coming up here?"

"First I've heard of it," Jess sounded puzzled.

Becker glanced at Abby. "Message came from Lester apparently."

Abby nodded at him in confirmation.

"OK, give me a moment."

Becker waited impatiently, while Abby went over to forestall Donnie. When Jess came back on line she sounded puzzled.

"Lester wants you down in the village. I can't work out why but he seems to think it's important."

"He does realise everyone up here is tired. I can't go randomly changing the shifts every time Lester gets a whim."

Becker didn't mention Spidey's death. It wasn't as if Jess or Lester were unaffected by it. It wouldn't help to say that just right now he thought his team needed him with them.

"You'll have more people in a couple of hours. You can compensate then," Jess said.

"This doesn't make any sense, Jess."

"I know, but I don't think it's worth fighting Lester over. We can cover it in the debrief."

Becker had to acknowledge the sense in her words. Lester could, on occasion, be deeply stubborn and when politics of some kind was going down he tended to keep the cards close to his chest. It was possible there was some issue involving bigwigs in the village or the mainland which needed Becker's presence. Becker just hoped Lester would turn out to have a good excuse at the end of the day.

"Things not going as planned?" Donnie asked sympathetically as Becker flopped down in the seat next to him and huffed with irritation.

"Apparently the rest of my team can't be trusted to get off a ferry without me there to supervise."

"Well, they can be tricksy things those ferries," Donnie said deadpan. He turned over the engine and began a gentle three point turn. "Still seems a little odd. Everything else going as you expect?"

"No," Becker said. "We don't know why we can't get rid of that ball of light. We usually can. And our man died at lunchtime."

"Sorry to hear that."

Becker nodded silently.

"So there's something strange about yon light ball, then. Stranger than normal?" Donnie said after a bit.

"Not according to my scientist. He says there are no unusual readings at all."

"Mebbe he doesn't have the right equipment."

"I don't know. We didn't bring much with us initially. We got a bit more when the helicopter came last night. He's been pointing gadgets at it all morning and still says there's nothing unusual."

Donnie lapsed into silence. Becker glanced across at him. He didn't know the man well, but the way his brows were furrowed suggested Donnie was concerned about something.

"Penny for them?" Becker asked.

Donnie shook himself. "It's nothing really. There are just a lot of odd legends about that stone circle. People not acting like themselves, making mistakes."

Becker thought about that a moment. "Aren't there legends about all stone circles?"

"Aye well, that's probably true enough and I've never known anything particularly strange happen up there. The odd missing sheep, I suppose."

Becker stared out the front windscreen of the car. The sky was beginning to darken in the distance; ominous black clouds rolling down to meet the sea. He didn't think a few missing sheep were going to help much in sorting out whatever the anomaly was.

* * *

They reached the village just as the ferry was docking in the harbour. Becker leaned on the iron rail that separated the road from the water below and took a moment to enjoy the salty smell on the air and appreciate the fact that it wasn't raining yet. Donnie got out of his Land Rover and leaned on the rail next to him.

Becker watched as a handful of cars drove off the ferry and wound their way into the streets of the village. There was no sign of an ARC team, though Becker could see two SUVs parked on the deck. There was an awkward wait. A small queue of cars had formed on the harbour waiting to embark. One of them sounded its horn. Becker watched as several men examined the SUVs and then walked out onto the harbourside and looked around.

"You'd better go talk to them," Donnie said.

"I better had." Becker set off down the slope. "Jess, can you hear me?" he asked.

"Loud and clear."

"I can see our equipment on the ferry, but there's no sign of Matt and Emily and their team."

"I'll check their location... oh!"

"Oh?"

"They're in Sutherland, or they were. The system stopped logging them some time ago. I have no idea what's going on. I don't even know why the alert didn't sound when they went off grid."

"Sutherland?" Becker repeated because his mind was blanking on a situation where Jess didn't know what was going on.

"You Captain Becker?" one of the ferrymen asked.

"Yes?"

"Sign here. Can you get these off the boat as quickly as possible? We need to load on the next cars."

Becker absentmindedly signed the clipboard that was thrust into his hands and accepted the two sets of keys that were handed to him.

"What some help?" Donnie asked.

"Yes, can you drive one of these up to the B&B? We can leave it there for now."

Donnie nodded and climbed into one of the vehicles. Becker climbed into the other and began to drive it off the ferry.

"Well I've just signed for two SUVs," he told Jess. "But I'd like to know where the reinforcements are."

"I can't raise them on comms. I'm sorry Becker. Emma told me they were on their way to you up the M6. I never thought to double check that they actually were and there's nothing in the system."

* * *

"Are we in the right place?" Matt asked.

They were in a small dry cave. A thin layer of sandy soil covered an uneven floor. Matt's head torch illuminated a bare rock face only about a metre in front of him and a slightly larger space to his left.

"I fucking well hope so," muttered Lyle. "That was a bloody nasty crawl, especially with amateurs in tow."

Emily squeezed herself out of the small passageway and made a face as she fruitlessly attempted to dust the mud and dirt off her trousers.

"Where's the anomaly then?" she asked.

"That would be the fucking million dollar question," Lyle responded.

They shone their torches around the larger cave on the left while Kermit, who had taken up the rear of the party squeezed into the cave as well.

"This is definitely the right place," remarked Lyle. "I've been here before on a caving trip. Lester was very clear about the location."

"Well the anomaly isn't here now, whatever those cavers reported," observed Kermit.

Matt sighed. "Wild goose chase then. We'd better get out of here as quickly as possible and see if we can get to the West Coast after all before the weather closes in."

* * *

It didn't take Jess too long to find the order that re-routed Matt, Emily and the second team to Sutherland. Emma had gone home but Jess called her anyway.

"Emma, why was Matt's team re-routed to Sutherland? Why wasn't I told?"

"It's nothing to do with me." Emma's voice sounded defensive over the mobile but Jess wasn't really in the mood to deal with the girl's fragile ego just now.

"But you were manning the station this afternoon. This order was issued before I came back on duty."

"I gave the order, Jess." Lester interrupted the conversation.

"But..." Jess began and then stopped as she baulked at the massive breach of protocol involved.

"You have a problem? You were in the medical lab and I couldn't find Emma. A report came in of an anomaly in a caving complex in Sutherland. I deemed it appropriate to re-route the team."

"But..." Jess began again. Lester's actions were so way beyond protocol that she wasn't even sure where to start with them.

Lester glanced at his watch. "Jess, have you been here since first thing this morning?"

Jess glanced guiltily at her watch. After Spidey had died she had stayed because Lester had mentioned quarantine, though she realised now that she hadn't heard any more about that. She'd grabbed a bite to eat in the canteen and then lurked around the common room trying to distract herself with mindless puzzle games on Facebook. Then it occurred to her that there was actually nothing wrong with that and she looked up and gave Lester a hard stare.

"I got called in when Spidey arrived, and there didn't seem a lot of point going home just for an hour or two. I assume that isn't a problem."

"Jess, I'm ordering you home right now. You're obviously distressed. I should have sent you earlier but I was distracted."

"I'm not distressed," she protested, because she really honestly wasn't. Spidey dying had been a shock, but he hadn't been close family and she wasn't a china doll. What was more she had a job to do and people who needed her.

Lester raised an eyebrow at her. Then looked over at Mike Smith, one of the other technicians. "Make her leave and call Khan in early for his shift," he said and then turned on his heel and retreated to his office.

* * *

Becker checked the backs of both of the SUVs. One contained more food and tents along with miscellaneous other equipment and some EMDs in a locked case. All packed, no doubt, in the anticipation that there would have been half a dozen extra people on the island. The other contained scientific equipment of mysterious purpose, though no doubt Connor would know what it was for. 

Becker thanked Donnie for his help.

"We can probably manage from now on. We've got two vehicles. I'll grab a bite to eat at Seaview, collect Blade and Finn, and then the three of us will move back up to the stone circle."

Donnie nodded thoughtfully. "What does your operations person have to say about the fubar with the reinforcements?"

Becker breathed out forcefully and then fought to keep his irritation under control. Jess had been replaced by some technician he barely knew on comms and he wasn't getting anything useful from him. The man simply said there had been a second anomaly call out and the other team had been sent there. Becker couldn't find out why Jess hadn't known about this and he wasn't buying the explanation that she'd been too upset by Spidey's death. He'd known Jess upset by a lot of things but that had never caused her to loose track of operational details.

"I've nothing pressing to do this afternoon," Donnie remarked before Becker could say more. "I'll wait here for a bit, at least until you head out, just in case you need another vehicle."

* * *

Jess stood outside the gates of the ARC and stamped her foot in frustration. She hadn't exactly been run off the premises, but it had been made clear that Lester expected her to go and go now. A couple of people had offered lifts, all concerned that she was over-wrought following Spidey's deaths but she had turned them down. She was aware of a strong desire to vent and complain about Lester bypassing procedure but knew it wouldn't do her any favours if she let rip in front of ARC personnel. Lester liked to project an aura of prickly sarcasm but most of his employees had long seen through it and their loyalty was fierce.

She checked her watch. She'd travelled in by bus because her car was undergoing an MOT and it was 40 minutes until the next one would come. As she was debating whether to walk further into town and closer to busier bus lanes a car drew up in front of her and the window slid down.

Jess had spent enough time going through the ARC's files to recognise Jenny Lewis. The woman was as immaculately dressed as her reputation led Jess to expect. The car was a new Mercedes. It was spotless, professional and reeking of the sort of money you'd expect from a top flight PR executive. The only odd thing was the grey cat seated in the passenger seat which regarded Jess with intense large eyes.

"Jess Parker?" Jenny asked.

"Umm, yes?"

"Do you want a lift?"

"Do you know where I'm going?" Jess asked.

Jenny turned away from her to look at the road a moment and then turned back, a strangely guarded expression on her face. "I don't know where you live, but you'll need to go there first to pack. Your final destination is the island of Cenca and we can certainly help you get there."

"We?" Jess asked.

Jenny looked annoyed for a moment. "You and me," she amended.

Jess wasn't convinced but she was nebulously concerned about the events and being on the island was definitely going to be preferable to being stuck at home, out of touch with the ARC and the teams in the field.

"OK, I can certainly give you directions to my place," Jess said. 

She walked round the car and climbed into the passenger seat, while the grey cat leaped gracefully out of the way and settled itself into the back.

"You can explain how you're involved on the way," Jess added.

Jenny made a face. "If you don't mind, I think it will be easier to explain once we are on the way to the island. It won't require you to take quite so many impossible things on trust."

Jess snorted. "Try me. I work for a secret government organisation which tries to shoo dinosaurs back through rips in time."

"I know," Jenny replied. "Believe me, that's way way more probable than the story I'm going to tell you."

* * *

"Phone call for you," Annie said to Becker, sticking her head around the door of the sitting room at the B&B.

Becker looked over at Donnie, who was reading a copy of the Daily Mail. Donnie just shrugged back at him so Becker put down the gargantuan sandwich Annie had made for him and headed out into the corridor after her.

"It came through to my office," she said, leading him through a door marked `Staff Only' and down a narrow corridor to a tiny room piled high with paperwork and files. A small IKEA desk was squeezed into one corner with a PC and a phone, which was lying next to it. 

Becker picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Captain Becker?"

"Yes?"

"This is Lieutenant Wells, your chopper pilot."

"Yes, is there a problem?"

"Don't know to be honest. Lieutenant Watts and I have just had orders to hop along to the ARC and collect your boss."

Becker briefly attempted to figure out what General Preston could be doing at the ARC and then he realised who Callum Wells must mean.

"What? Lester?"

"Yes, we're to fly him out to Cenca. It'll take us some time and it's going to be a close run thing with the weather."

"Were you told why he was coming out in the field?" Becker asked.

"Not a dicky bird. In fact I'm not getting anything useful out of the chocolate fireguard who has taken over from Jess."

"He's a temporary replacement. There'll be a fully trained operator there shortly."

"That's as maybe, but I gather your reinforcements got detoured somewhere."

"So I hear, a second anomaly shout."

"That's not what I picked up listening to some of their comms chatter. There was some discussion about whether a chopper should pick them up and bring them to Cenca, but Lester over-ruled me."

"And now he's coming out here in person."

"That's about the size of it, mate. Look, I can't put my finger on anything which is why I'm just dropping you a phone call, not calling anything in. But something fishy as hell is going on. Your mate Lyle said to tell you his thumbs were itching."

Becker rolled his eyes. Lyle's thumbs were notorious, but Lyle wouldn't have sent the message unless he too was concerned that something was going on.

"OK, well thanks, Callum. I guess you had better bring Lester up here as ordered. We'll see what he wants when he arrives."

"On it. Take care, mate."

Becker nodded and put down the phone. He stared at it for a moment or two trying to pinpoint his own sense of unease. He decided it was time to find Blade and Finn and get everyone back to the stone circle.

He headed up the stairs and banged on Blade's door. Blade opened it almost instantly and stared impassively at Becker.

"Something's up," Becker said. "We need to get back to the Ring of Caitri."

Blade nodded and vanished back into the room. Becker headed up the corridor and banged on Finn's door. It also opened almost instantaneously.

"We're ready when you are," Blade said from behind Becker's back. 

Becker started in surprise. He hadn't heard Blade approach. He looked around and for the briefest moment Blade's eyes seemed to contract so they were shaped like those of a cat. Then he blinked and they went back to normal.

"We should take Donnie with us as well," Finn said, walking out of his room and shutting the door behind him.

"That won't be necessary. Two cars came on the ferry," Becker said.

Finn grinned and his expression was almost feral. "Yes, but we have need of a ninth thane."

"A ninth what?" Becker asked.

He felt the prick of a knifepoint in the small of his back.

"A ninth thane," Blade said. Then there was a sharp explosion at the back of Becker's head and everything went black.


	4. Chapter 4

On Jenny's suggestion, Jess put on a thick coat and jumper, warm trousers and a pair of knee length boots. Jenny clearly thought Jess ought to have more practical shoes about the place but the boots were waterproof with a low heel so Jess didn't quite see what she was complaining about. It wasn't like Jenny had a reputation for wearing sensible clothes in the field.

All the time the cat weaved in and out of Jenny's legs alternately purring and meowing. If she were honest with herself, it was freaking Jess out a bit.

"How are we going to get to Cenca?" she asked, after she'd packed a small overnight bag to take with her. Jenny had already heaved a rucksack into the hallway of her flat, so they presumably weren't taking Jenny's car.

"We need to get up on the roof," Jenny said.

"Helicopter? I'm not sure our roof is strong enough to land on."

"Don't worry. Do you have an access hatch or something?"

"Yeah, top floor."

"Come on then!"

Jenny ushered them out of the flat. Jess allowed herself to be swept along by it all but she had to admit to some misgivings. She'd read Jenny's file so knew, in theory, that Jenny was competent, no nonsense and had good taste in shoes. However this whole encounter was making less sense as it progressed. Jenny's cat was still with them, which was distinctly odd, too.

Jess had never been on her roof before. Access proved quite easy, up a flight of stairs and through a door marked Fire Exit. The roof itself was grey and flat. There was a cluster of antennae and satellite dishes on one side next to a small bench and rather forlorn looking flower pot full of cigarette butts, which suggested at least one of the other residents of the building came up here regularly. An ugly metal rail ran around the edge. A cold wind was blowing with more than a hint of rain. 

"This must be the storm," Jenny said.

"Nope, it's a different one. The really big one will hit Scotland in the early hours but miss us. We've just got a few off-shoots here." Jess had a lot of time over the past two days watching weather maps. 

Jenny nodded absently and stood on the roof, her hands on her hips and a thoughtful expression on her face.

"I think you had better close your eyes," she said slowly.

"Why?" Jess demanded.

Jenny huffed. "It'll be easier. I promise you won't have to trust me for much longer."

"That would be true if you were about to push me off the edge of the roof," Jess couldn't help pointing out.

"Yes, OK, but I really don't know how to explain this until you've seen it and for you to see it I need to get you there and it'll be easier to get you there with your eyes closed."

Jess put on her most sceptical expression and folded her arms. Jenny's cat meowed imperiously.

Jenny glanced down at it and scowled. Then looked up to see Jess watching her.

"And I promise I haven't turned into a crazy cat lady," Jenny said.

Jess remained where she was. It had been a long, trying and strange day and while she wanted to trust Jenny, nothing here was making any sense at all.

The cat meowed again. Jess watched Jenny scowl at it a second time. The expression was pure `shut up, you are not helping'.

"Are you talking to your cat?" she blurted out.

"No, he's talking at me!" Jenny snapped.

"What's he saying?" Jess asked, succumbing briefly to the madness.

"That we need to hurry up if we want to save Becker and the others." Jenny shrugged and looked a little helpless.

"This is all your cat's idea?" Jess asked dubiously.

"I am _not_ a crazy cat lady."

"But this _is_ all your cat's idea."

Jenny sighed noisily. "Look, have you read about the mission up in Scotland that Nick and Lester went on shortly after Stephen died."

"I've seen the file. There wasn't much in it." There weren't many files which had been censored beyond her ability to hack, but this was one of them.

"OK, so that's not going to be much help here then." Jenny said. "I am deadly serious though about the danger to Becker and to the others up in Scotland."

Jess crossed her arms and frowned. She knew something odd was going on and she was very worried about the whole situation. Worried for everyone. The problem was that the current solution apparently being presented made no sense. She had only gone along with it this far because Jenny's reputation preceded her.

"Please, just trust me a little longer," Jenny said.

"You promise you're not going to push me off the edge of the building?"

"Guides' honour."

Jess sighed, closed her eyes and held out her hand. "This had better be good, though."

"I'm not sure if good is the operative word."

Jenny's hand closed around hers. Jess took a hesitant step forward following the slight pull from Jenny. She suppressed thoughts about the edge of the building.

"There's a step up here," Jenny said.

"Like onto the safety rail around the edge of the roof?" Jess asked.

"No, not like that at all. Just step up."

Jess took a step up and felt a hard surface beneath her feet. "There aren't any steps on my roof."

"Just keep climbing. It's only a short way."

Jess let herself be led up what felt like a stone staircase. She struggled to orient herself, trying to work out where the steps could be.

"OK, it's flat now."

Jenny's hand continued to guide her forwards.

"Can I open my eyes?" Jess asked.

"Umm, maybe?"

Jess opened her eyes. She was standing above the roofs of the city. It was dusk and a large pale moon was already hanging in the sky directly before her. She gasped and looked down. There was nothing beneath her feet. Her mind stuttered for a moment and then suddenly she was falling.

Jenny shrieked in surprise and her grip tightened around Jess's hand, jerking Jess's fall to a sudden stop. Jess looked up at Jenny her mind blank with panic. _Jenny wasn't standing on anything_. In fact Jenny appeared to be lying flat on nothing, one hand frantically gripping Jess's.

"Close your eyes! Close your eyes!" Jenny shouted urgently.

Jess closed her eyes.

"OK, OK. There's a cliff edge in front of you. Can you feel it?"

"There isn't." Jess whimpered.

"Yes there is. Hold out your free hand."

Jess could feel her fingers slipping in Jenny's grip. But something must be holding Jenny up. Jess reached forwards and her fingers felt cold jagged stone. She instinctively gripped hold.

"OK, keep your eyes closed but there is a ledge just in front of your feet. Can you get your feet on it."

Cautiously Jess moved her feet and was relieved when they found purchase.

"Move your left foot a bit higher there's another ledge there. Just don't open your eyes."

Obediently Jess moved her foot as instructed. Slowly, with her eyes tight shut the whole time, she allowed Jenny to guide her upwards, until she felt welcome arms under her shoulders, pulling her onto some kind of sandy, rocky surface.

Jess drew a ragged breath. "I think I could use that explanation. Right now I'm prepared to believe just about anything."

Jenny was breathing heavily and her hands hadn't let go of Jess. "It's a long story," she said.

"Summarise."

Jenny chuckled. "Very well. Fairyland exists. You can reach it through some anomalies. I have no idea how it works so don't ask."

"OK, fairyland. I guess I'll buy that for now."

"Somehow Lester and Cutter got caught up with it on that Scottish shout."

Jenny paused and Jess guessed she was sifting through details, deciding which needed to be understood.

"There was an out, of some kind, when we all thought Cutter died. I'm not sure if it's the same Cutter or some kind of image or clone of him, but he's still around in Fairyland."

"Cutter's still alive."

"Sort of, him and Ryan and Stephen and even my Claudia double, I'm not sure. I try not to think about the magic stuff too hard."

"Are you a witch?" Jess interrupted. "I mean, what with the cat."

Jenny laughed again. "No, but Graymaulkin is magical. He's Prince of the London Alley Cats. That's why we can use one of the fairy roads to get from London to Cenca. That's where we are now."

"On a fairy road? An invisible fairy road?"

"It isn't invisible. I'm not sure why it vanished when you opened your eyes."

Jess heard a sharp meaow and Jenny gave an exaggerated sigh.

"What does he say?" Jess asked.

"He says you have to believe in the road."

"Well I'm sitting on it fine."

There was another meaow. Jenny snorted.

"What's he saying now?"

"I need to describe the road for you. Umm, well, it's made of stone, a kind of greyish stone. In fact everything is greyish and silver. I think that's because it is a moonlight road."

"A moonlight road?"

"Yes, Graymaulkin and his people, they like the moonlight, I think."

There was another sharp meaow.

"OK, OK, fine, you are nighttime creatures with no particular allegiance. Can we leave politics out of this?"

"Grey moonlight road?" Jess said, ignoring the comments about politics as probably irrelevant.

"Yes, grey flagstones and silvery sand either side of us. It's a thin layer or maybe slightly translucent. Anyway at the moment it is possible to just about see London through it. There isn't much else. It's pretty desolate. The fairy roads are normally more decorative than this."

There was another interruption from Graymaulkin.

"Oh," was all Jenny said.

"What did he say?"

"I think we should get to that in a minute. I think you should try opening your eyes." Jenny's grip on Jess's waist tightened. "Think about the moonlight road and just open your eyes."

Jess thought hard about grey flagstones and silvery sand and then opened her eyes slowly. She gasped once she had. The landscape was much as Jenny had described but it had a kind of stark, desolate beauty. The night sky hung above them, clear and full of stars. A pale moon shone down on the grey road and the silver sand. As Jenny had said, it was possible to see the lights of London just below them, shining faintly through the grains. Jess reached out and touched the sand, letting it slip through her fingers. She pulled free of Jenny and stood up unsteadily on the paved road.

She realised, for the first time, that the air was totally still.

"What happened to the storm?" she asked.

Jenny stood up as well. "I don't know, but hopefully we won't have to get through it to reach Cenca."

Graymaulkin also rose to his feet and set off ahead of them down the long road. The two women followed.

"Tell me the rest of it," said Jess.

* * *

Becker came round in the back of one of the SUVs. He felt sick and groggy, almost certainly from concussion. He appeared to have been tied up very efficiently. His arms were trapped behind him and his feet were held together with cable ties. He assumed his wrists were as well. He glanced around. It was dark outside. In the open country of the island there was little to be seen but he could guess they were headed back towards the Ring of Caitri. He could see Blade and Finn sitting in the front of the SUV. He glanced sideways. Donnie was seated next to him, also bound. The car bounced on the uneven surface of the road and Becker had to fight back a wave of nausea. He took a couple of deep breaths and focused on the back of Blade's head.

"What happened?" he asked quietly once the sickness had passed.

"Yon young man," Donnie nodded in Finn's direction. "Came downstairs, pointed a gun at me and ordered me into the car. It didn't seem politic to refuse."

"What's going on? Do you know?"

"Not a dicky bird. They're not very communicative, your men."

Finn turned around and looked at them briefly. In the darkness his eyes glowed a pale yellow with almond shaped pupils. He didn't say anything though, just turned back to the road.

"Any guesses?" Becker asked, recalling that Donnie had been hinting at something earlier.

"Did you see his eyes?" Donnie asked.

"Yes."

"Well, there is a local legend of Cat Sidhe, the King of Cats and his nine thanes. It's just folklore."

"But?" Becker prompted.

"In the tale, the cats can steal the souls of the dead. That's why it's important to throw a really good wake, scares the cats away."

"Finn and Blade aren't dead," Becker pointed out.

He felt Donnie shrug next to him.

"They're not behaving normally now, though, are they?"

Becker groaned. He felt tired and sick and helpless. He took more deep breaths to settle his churning insides. The trip across the island would take a while. Hopefully he would be beginning to feel better by the time they reached the stone circle and he'd be up to doing something about the situation.

* * *

"So this Cat Sidhe claims to be boss cat of Fairyland?" Jess asked.

"Something like that, or he did, but then he and his nine thanes got disembodied. Graymaulkin says there's an epic ballad about it."

"Maybe another time," Jess said. She contemplated the idea of Graymaulkin singing her a ballad and imagined caterwauling. "Definitely another time."

"I get the impression cats aren't all that keen on hierarchies and kings, so I don't think anyone was exactly sorry when Cat Sidhe lost his body."

"I thought you said Graymaulkin was a Prince?"

Jenny grinned. "Well, it's possible Graymaulkin has more to lose than most. He claims to be an elective prince with a democratic mandate."

"He claims what?"

"I really shouldn't let him watch the parliament channel so often."

"How does this affect Becker and the others? I get that Cenca and the Ring of Caitri must be Cat Sidhe's stomping ground, right? I saw something about Cat legends when I was putting together the local intel. So does the anomaly on Cenca lead to fairyland."

"So it would seem. It leads directly to Cat Sidhe's seat of power. Although disembodied, he and his nine thanes can still ride on beams of light and they can steal bodies."

"Oh!" Jess said in sudden understanding. "I thought I saw a cat climb out of Spidey and then it jumped and Lester was right behind me. That would explain a lot of Lester's odd behaviour."

"Yes, it would."

"But I don't understand what happened with Spidey. He wasn't taken over at all, he had some kind of weird illness."

Graymaulkin meaowed.

"That's why we've got you with us. He was a relative right?"

"Yes."

"So according to Graymaulkin, Cat Sidhe and his thanes have some historic enemies among mortals. The mouse people."

"The mouse people? I'm a mouse person. That sounds... sort of lame, to be honest."

Jenny shrugged and offered up a sympathetic smile. 

"Right, so Spidey was, sort of immune? Instead of getting taken over the cat thing just killed him. I don't honestly see how this helps."

"You're all we have. There's a lot of improvisation going on here, but that seems to be how the fairy people like it."

Jess sighed. They walked in silence for a while.

"You're not going to offer me the opportunity to go back? Be somewhere safe?" Jess asked after a bit.

"I wasn't intending to. Do you want the opportunity?"

Jess squared her shoulders. "No, I was just sort of expecting it. Becker wouldn't want me putting myself in danger."

Becker was going to be supremely pissed off about the whole situation in fact.

"Are you going to let that stop you?" Jenny asked and she sounded amused.

"No! Of course not!"

"Well then."

* * *

It was dark when the SUV pulled up by the stone circle and the storm was beginning to brew. Heavy drops of rain were falling intermittently and every so often a sudden gust of wind rocked the car. Donnie and Becker were pulled out of the SUV and carried up to the stone circle where they were dumped in separate tents.

Connor sat to watch Becker. It was a perfectly silent Connor with strange yellow eyes and the next few hours were some the most unnerving Becker had ever experienced. His attempts to make conversation were ignored and Connor was too far away to reach easily in any kind of attack. Not that Becker would have been able to get far with both hands and feet bound even if he did somehow manage to overpower his guard. Just before midnight, Becker heard the sound of the helicopter over the rising wind. Ten minutes and some muffled shouting later Blade appeared, nodded to Connor and the two of them pulled Becker out of the tent and across to the stone circle.

The helicopter was perched precariously on the clifftop, its rotors bouncing in the wind. Becker strained his eyes but couldn't see anyone in it.

Becker's heart sank when he saw Lieutenants Watts and Wells, the two chopper pilots, both trussed up tightly, propped against two of the stones. Lester was free and unbound, standing next to Private Lacey.

"Hello, Captain," Lieutenant Watts remarked, with none of his usual cheer.

"Do we have the first fucking clue what's going on?" Callum asked.

Becker glanced at Donnie, who shrugged. "Our best guess involves mythical cats who steal souls, so no," he answered.

"Mind you, there's something distinctly odd about everyone's eyes," Lieutenant Watts said.

"And what the hell is Lester doing here with them?" Becker added. "I mean I can sort of understand people at the anomaly site being effected by something but Lester was in bloody London."

"It's time," Lester's voice cut through their discussion and he walked forward into the ring. 

The other five people gathered around until a full circle was formed.

"Time for what?" Becker shouted.

Up above him there was a sudden break in the clouds and the moon shone down brightly upon the scene. It was as if the moonlight became refracted through the anomaly. Becker blinked as the bright light radiated outwards. As he watched the ghostly forms of three cats came out of the anomaly. They seemed to bound along the rays of moonlight and he watched in horror as they headed for the helpless forms of Donnie, Watts and Callum. Then the clouds rolled in once more and everything was plunged into the deep evening gloom.

Blade switched on a torch and walked over to Watts. He flicked out a knife and cut through the cable ties on his wrists. Watts grinned and straightened up, rubbing circulation back into his hands. Connor released Donnie and Lacey unbound Callum. The three of them moved together with the others and then turned to look at Becker, their eyes glowing yellow and cat-like in the dark.

Shit, so it was mythical cats who stole people's souls.

"What happens to me?" Becker asked.

"We're saving you for Cat Sidhe himself," Lester said. "Only the strongest will do."


	5. Chapter 5

"Where are we now?" Jess asked.

Graymaulkin had veered off the path and out onto the sands. Jess's legs felt like lead and her backpack weighed heavily on her shoulders. She glanced at her watch. It was past one o'clock in the morning. They had been walking for over five hours and the bleak landscape had long ago lost its charm.

"We're taking a detour apparently. The road we're on will take us into the heart of Cat Sidhe's territory. This is a side route." 

Jenny didn't sound any happier than Jess was. Jess risked the urge to ask if this meant they were nearly there yet.

The side route quickly turned into a precipitous stone staircase and both Jenny and Jess ended up edging down it slowly, fingers jammed into crevices in the rock in a desperate attempt to hold on. A wind picked up, light at first but gradually getting stronger as they descended. It was followed by rain, making the rocks wet and slippery. Jess's world retreated to just her hands and feet, focusing as best she could on holding on and moving forward. She was surprised when suddenly the ground flattened out and she found herself standing on a cobbled street. Looking around her she realised she was in a village. A few streetlights revealed squat houses covered in white plaster with grey slate roofs. The sound of waves crashing over rocks was audible even above the wind and the air was full of the tang of salt. Jess looked behind her. The cliff they had climbed down was as insubstantial as mist and as she watched it faded away leaving them stranded.

"Where are we?" Jess shouted over the wind.

"I don't know. Somewhere on the island, I think," Jenny said.

Jess's logistical mind sprang into gear. "We'll be in the village. If we head up to the next street along we can find our way to the B&B."

"Is that a good idea?" Jenny asked.

"We can't stay out here in this weather. At least at the B&B we can get our bearings and we may be able to work out what has been going on." 

Jess set off, the layout of the village unfolding in her mind's eye like the Ordnance Survey maps she had been studying only that afternoon.

"ARC SUV" Jenny remarked as they approached the house. The black form of the car sat silently in the driveway. Jess peered through the window, but there was nothing much to see in the dark. 

Jenny knocked on the door. When no one answered she glanced anxiously at her watch and bit her lip. Jess leaned tiredly against the porch.

"Just keep banging?"

"Only thing for it, I think." Jenny hammered again loudly, and then crouched down to shout through the letterbox, "Hello? anyone there?"

Jess saw a light flicker on somewhere beyond the frosted glass of the door. "Someone's home."

Jenny hammered the door knocker again.

Finally the door opened and a nervous looking woman peered out at them from behind the safety of a chain. From Becker's description and the pink hair, Jess recognised her as Annie.

"Who are you?" the woman asked suspiciously.

"I'm Jess Parker, I think we spoke on the phone yesterday about hiring the B&B for the soldiers up at the Ring of Caitri."

The woman backed up and began closing the door, but Jenny quickly stuck her foot in the gap.

"Don't worry. We're the cavalry," she said firmly.

Graymaulkin slithered through the gap and purred in a friendly fashion, curling his way between Annie's legs. Jess thought it a rather blatant display of sucking up and Jenny must have felt similarly, judging from the look on her face. However it seemed to do the trick. Annie released the chain and opened the door to let them in.

"We're on your side, honestly," Jess said. "What happened?"

"You don't know?"

"Well we know something bad happened because," Jess waved her hands around vaguely trying to encompass everything without being specific about fairy moonlight roads and magical cats.

"Let them in, Annie, I think we're going to have to trust them."

A thickset woman came out of a side room.

"You must be Shona Ross," Jess said, once again working from Becker's description.

"The same," agreed Shona and shook both their hands.

"Jess Parker and Jenny Lewis," Jenny said.

"And who is this handsome fellow?" Shona asked, scooping Graymaulkin up into her arms.

Jess almost laughed at the indignant look on the cat's face.

"That's Graymaulkin," Jenny said. "Things are a little complicated to explain."

Shona snorted. "The old ways aren't as obsolete up here as you might think. I'm going to guess that Cat Sidhe has come out of that anomalous atmospheric event you've all been so interested in."

"Not yet, at least we think not," Jenny said.

"Your soldiers were behaving very oddly though. They kidnapped Captain Becker and Donnie," Annie said. "I had to hide in the office."

"That was probably very sensible," Jenny said.

"What happened?" Jess asked.

"I heard a crash, so I came out to investigate. I met Donnie in the hallway and he told me to hide in the office while he went to investigate. Then I saw him being marched out at gun point. After that the two soldiers, Rob Finn and Niall Richards, carried the captain out. They all got into one of the cars and drove away. I tried calling the number you gave me, but no one answered so then I called Shona."

By this point Shona had ushered them all into the B&B's living room. There was a glass of amber liquid on a small table and Annie picked it up and took a gulp.

"You're sure Cat Sidhe's not out?" Shona asked.

Jenny nodded. "Not yet. We think it's the nine thanes. They're stealing souls, or at least taking over people's bodies."

"Cat Sidhe will be last then, presumably yon handsome dashing Captain is being reserved for him," Shona said.

"We need a plan, but the problem is we've no idea how to stop them," Jess said.

"We know Jess will probably be resistant to being taken over," Jenny said. "According to Graymaulkin there, Jess is descended from the mouse people who are opposed to Cat Sidhe."

"That's not very comforting. Being a mouse person didn't help our other soldier, Spidey. He died and the thane managed to get our boss, Lester, after that."

Jess slumped down in one of the armchairs, feeling exhaustion creeping up on her. "Besides if we assume that all the nine thanes now have bodies, we don't really have to worry about more people getting taken over."

"What's in the SUV?" Jenny asked.

"I think it's the supply vehicle which means tents, food, some EMDs, electro-magnetic stun weapons one of the team came up with."

"EMDs could be useful. We can take down the thanes without permanently injuring anyone."

"And Becker?"

Graymaulkin meaowed intensely.

Shona raised her eyebrows and looked towards Jenny and Jess.

Jenny shrugged. "He says there will be an appointed time for the takeover. If we can interrupt it, then Cat Sidhe will be thwarted, at least for a while. It's even possible the thanes will release the others."

Jess rubbed her forehead. "Spidey got attacked somewhere around midnight last night. Finn and Blade were with him, so that was probably three people. Spidey died about midday and he said something about the second wave. That's when Lester got infected. The cats might have taken some other people then."

"Three perhaps," Shona said.

Jess nodded. "Connor, Abby and Lacey would all have been at the anomaly. When did our soldiers take Donnie and Becker up to the ring?"

"Just after nine."

"So they could have taken over Donnie any time after nine, but I would guess midnight. I don't know where they would get the last two bodies from."

Shona shook her head. "Best to assume they found someone."

The all looked at each other.

"Midday then for Becker," Jenny said.

Jess shrugged. "I'm just guessing."

Graymaulkin meaowed.

"Graymaulkin says it's a good guess. It makes sense to him. The timing may not be critical but Fairyland is big on symbolism and Cat Sidhe has a whole moonbeam, sunbeam thing going. Midday would make everything more likely to work."

Annie glanced at her watch. "You have ten hours then before the big event."

"And you will need some sleep before that by the looks of you," said Shona.

Jess began to protest but Jenny raised a hand. "We can take the EMDs up to the Ring, attempt to subdue the people up there any time in the next ten hours. I think that's our only option. Then we take things from there. We can afford to sleep at least until the early morning."

"Sounds like a plan," said Shona.

"Except for the fact that there are at least two controlled Special Forces soldiers, if not more, up there. I'm not sure any of us are exactly a match from them." Jess said.

"We could pick up the Colonel en route. He used to be Special Forces," Annie said.

Jess looked across at Jenny in despair. One retired Special Forces officer against Finn, Blade and quite probably Lacey, did not sound like good odds to her.

"We've got nothing better," Jenny said.

"We need a distraction," Jess said firmly. "Can we make it look like we're doing some kind of counter-ritual nearby? The maps show that the ridge up to Ben Sidhe has a low subsidiary peak thing not far from the ring. Up on top of that."

"They'd know it wasn't a real ritual," Jenny said.

"Not if Graymaulkin can come up with something." Jess stared stubbornly at the cat. 

Everyone else turned to look at it.

Graymaulkin glanced away and began washing his paws, before standing to curl around Jenny's legs making a low purring sound. 

"Well?" Jess demanded.

"He says we can probably create some sort of distraction. Make it look as if Graymaulkin is summoning power. That should draw them to us."

Jess nodded. "OK, you and Graymaulkin can run a distraction. If the Colonel is up for it he and I can attempt to sneak in and rescue Becker."

"I'll come along as well," Shona said "You'll need the help."

* * *

At least there wasn't a storm blowing on the far side of the anomaly. Becker was grateful for small mercies. He was stripped to the waist and chained to a rock. He was surrounded by the red and yellow hues of sand and rock under a setting sun. The air was warm and mild with faint hints of flowers, though Becker couldn't see anything growing anywhere.

Blade walked up to him. In his hands he held a chalice that contained some kind of smoking liquid. Becker turned his face away but Blade grabbed hold of his head and forced the cup to his lips. Becker sealed them tight, but then Abby sauntered over and held his nose until he was forced to open his mouth and gasp for breath. Hot liquid poured down his throat.

"What the fuck was that?" he asked.

"It strengthens the body and makes it better able to house the being of Cat Sidhe," Blade replied.

Becker coughed and red sparks danced in his breath.

"Jesus," he muttered.

* * *

The drive across Cenca had been wild. The storm had set in, in earnest, in the early hours and hadn't really abated. They had had a long debate about timings, since Shona advised waiting until the wind had died down a bit before attempting a drive across the island. In the end they left just after nine. Rain battered the windscreen and everything was shrouded in a dense fog. Jess sat in the back next to Shona, while Jenny drove and Colonel Duncan kept up a stream of conversation. 

Jess wasn't sure what Shona had told him, but it had been enough to get her father to agree to come and he'd checked over the EMDs and listened to her explanation of their function with careful interest. Jess had been through the equipment in the SUV and had fitted them all with short range radios and filled small packs with some flash bangs (which Shona and Colonel assured her they knew how to use), utility knives, and wire cutters (since someone had been through the cable ties and Jess could guess why). She'd been tempted to add more, but they would have the SUV with them so she tried to restrict herself to stuff they might need in a hurry. Shona had insisted on bringing some bolt cutters from her own stores as well. 

The Colonel's conversation was just a light stream of observations about the island and the odd warning to Jenny about a blind summit or sharp bend. Jess found it oddly soothing and guessed that was probably the point. The going was slow, though. Jess kept checking her watch anxiously as they wound their way along the narrow single track round.

It was ten by the time they dropped Jenny and Graymaulkin off near the ridge up to Ben Sidhe. Jenny vanished into the gloom encased in waterproofs and with a distinctly miserable cat in her arms. She had a backpack full of crystals and other items Annie had produced from her own rooms in the B&B. Jess vaguely gathered that Annie, and possibly Shona, were pagans of some kind. Graymaulkin had been grudgingly impressed by the selection. Annie had even offered to come and help out but had been clearly relieved when Jenny announced that she could manage on her own. Jess hoped she and Graymaulkin would come up with something impressive.

"On to business now," said the Colonel. He had taken over the driving.

"Do you think it's safe to drive right up to the Ring?" Shona asked.

"Hard to say. We don't want to walk any further than we have to in this weather but we want the element of surprise."

"Park up in one of the passing places just before the road rounds the mountain?" Shona suggested.

"Aye, I think that's the best we'll manage." The Colonel started the engine and they drove forwards.

Visibility was down to a few feet where they parked the SUV. Jess felt as though she was in the middle of total wilderness. The wind blew the rain sharply into her face and she could see virtually nothing beyond the tiny circle of damp grass and asphalt.

"We'll stick to the road. In this fog no one will see us until we're almost on top of them," said Colonel Duncan.

They set off. Jess was grateful for the waterproofs. Inside them she felt warm and dry, but she could feel the water running down her face. Her hair clung to her forehead and she had to push it away from her eyes. She leaned into the wind and concentrated on following the indistinct forms of the Colonel and Shona just ahead of her.

They trudged up the road and then onto a rocky track. 

"We're pretty close to the circle here. Everyone keep quiet and move slowly," the Colonel whispered into his mike.

They crept forward cautiously. Gradually the forms of the stones began to resolve through the fog. They paused at a gesture from the Colonel and he crept off saying he was going to circle the ring. Jess glanced anxiously at her watch again. There was still over an hour until midday.

"Well?" Shona asked quietly when the Colonel returned.

"No movement. Jess, you say you can travel through these anomalies."

"Yes," Jess said, nodding.

"It'll certainly help us get close to the thing if they're all on the other side."

"On the other hand, we've got no idea what's going on through there," Jess said.

"First things first. Let's get up close but on the opposite side of the anomaly to the ridge your friend is climbing."

They hurried towards the ring of stones. As they came close Jess made out the form of a helicopter perched on the cliff top. 

"What's that doing here?" Shona asked.

"Lester must have come up from London. That's if they were trying to get all the thanes together. He'll have brought two pilots with him as well. I was wondering who the last two thanes were," Jess said.

"Could we hide in it?" Shona asked.

"Best not to," said the Colonel. "It's probably safe enough, but in this kind of weather there's always a chance it could get blown off the cliff and you wouldn't want to be in it if it did."

Jess shuddered and they crept around to the far side of the ring. Standing right next to the stones it was possible to make out the anomaly in the centre. The Colonel arranged them behind a stone and then nodded at Jess.

"Jenny, are you in position yet?" she asked over her radio.

"Almost," Jenny's breath was coming in short gasps. "This ridge is steeper than it looks on the map and Graymaulkin positively refuses to walk."

"We're ready when you are. It seems they are all on the other side of the anomaly."

They had a long tense wait before Jenny confirmed she was in place. Jess nodded at the Colonel and he gave her the thumbs up.

"Good to go," Jess reported.

At first nothing much happened. Jenny kept her mike on. She started some rather uncertain chanting accompanied by yowls from Graymaulkin.

"We have a bite," the Colonel said quietly.

Jess saw that Finn had stepped out of the anomaly. He scanned the area and then moved back inside. Jess bit her lip.

"Come on, come on, take the bait," Shona murmured.

Moments later several people exited the anomaly. Jess instinctively counted them off. 

"You've got six thanes coming your way," she reported to Jenny. "It looks like Finn, Blade, Abby, Donnie and two of the chopper pilots."

"Who does that leave us with?" the Colonel asked.

"Lester, Connor and Lacey. Lacey will be the dangerous one in terms of fighting."

They watched as the line of thanes disappeared into the fog. Jess glanced at her watch. The plan was to give them five minutes to move away from the ring. That way, even if the alert was sounded quickly when Jess and the others attacked, they would still have a little time before the thanes could return. The seconds ticked past agonisingly slowly.

"We're going in!" she said to Jenny when the five minutes were finally up.

She nodded at the Colonel who set off for the anomaly at a steady run with Shona on his heels. Jess gripped her EMD tightly and followed them.

Passing through the anomaly was a shock. The bitter cold wind and rain of Cenca vanished in an instant and gave way to a dry heat. Jess immediately felt herself beginning to sweat inside her layers of jumpers and waterproofs.

There was a shout and she realised they had been spotted. She glanced around wildly. They were in an open space that was almost like an arena. The anomaly hung in the bare sandy centre surrounded by weathered piles of rocks. Becker, stripped to the waist, was chained to one of the rocks and the three possessed members of the ARC team stood around him. Or they had been standing around him. Connor was running towards them, while Lacey had dropped into a brace position behind a rock. Jess heard the buzz of electricity as Lacey's EMD fired and she instinctively dropped down before realising that Lacey was just out of range and the charge dissipated harmlessly into the ground.

Lester, almost casually, sauntered behind a rock just by Becker. He didn't appear to be armed.

"Connor's the one running towards us," Jess said hurriedly. "Lacey has the other gun and she's special forces. The last is Lester. Don't underestimate him."

Colonel Duncan fired rapidly and Jess realised Connor's mad dash had brought him within range. Connor dropped to the sandy ground. Shona grabbed Jess's arm and pulled her to one side until they were both crouched behind one of the rocks. The Colonel seemed to have ducked behind another. Jess, peering over the top of the rock, realised that he and Lacey were working their way towards each other. When she looked back she could no longer see Lester.

"Here, bolt cutters." Shona pulled the heavy metal tool from her backpack and dumped them into Jess's hands. "Looks as though you're are going to need something a bit more serious than wire cutters."

Then Shona started weaving through the rocks away from the Colonel and Lacey.

Cautiously Jess began to make her way towards Becker doing her best to keep a wary eye on the cat and mouse games being played around her. Colonel Duncan and Lacey had dug in, exchanging shots across low rocks, neither able to move for fear the other would pick them off. Jess caught the odd glimpse of Lester and realised that Shona was working to lead him away from Becker. 

She ducked cautiously from rock to rock, glancing at her watch from time to time. She was aware that the other soldiers could, potentially, have been summoned back the moment they were spotted and, although they had waited five minutes to allow them to get clear they had been moving up hill. They would come back down it a lot faster.

Jess peeped over the top of a rock. She was about a metre away from Becker now. She could still hear Lacey and Duncan trading shots, but Shona and Lester were nowhere to be seen. She took a deep breath, clutched the bolt cutters close and ran for Becker.

His eyes widened as she approached but he didn't say anything. Quickly, she heaved the bolt cutters and struggled to get the pincers either side of the chains holding his right wrist. She had to lean quite hard on the handles but was relieved when the chain snapped and Becker's hand came free. At that moment his eyes widened.

"Behind you!" he said urgently.

Jess started to turn, only to have Lester grab hold of her and pull her away from Becker. She struggled but he had his arms clasped firmly around her waist and he was taller and heavier than she was.

"Only a moment more," Lester said. "Good job our schedule was flexible."

Jess glanced around wildly and was horrified to see the spectral form of a large cat perched on top of a large pile of stones, directly across the sandy ring from them.

Desperation lent her strength. She dropped the bolt cutters and then gripped her right hand in her left and drove her elbow back as hard as she could into Lester's midriff. He gasped and let go. She scooped up the bolt cutters and ran to Becker, frantically working them under the second chain. This time he could help, using his free hand to loop the chain in place. She pushed the handles together and then Becker was free.

There was an ear-splitting yowling noise. Jess spun around to see the spectral cat flying through the air towards Becker. Without thought she pushed Becker to one side and stood in his place. The cat entered her chest and she felt her heart constrict. The sandy arena in which they stood swooped away from her and she was up among the stars, Cat Sidhe hissing discontentedly in her ears.

"No, you don't," she muttered as she felt his ice cold touch on her brain. "I'm one of the mouse people and you don't get to control me."

There was a shooting pain through her head and she was distantly aware that she was falling to her knees. There was grainy sand beneath her fingers even though she was still looking through the stars, falling towards Jupiter. Cat Sidhe writhed around her thoughts fighting and clawing at her. She gasped again, feeling his intent up close against her own. Then she saw the nine thanes, racing towards her, summoned by their leader's urgent call. There were golden threads between the thanes and Cat Sidhe. At the moment they hung loose. Jess understood that Cat Sidhe was being careful not to pull the thanes to him faster than the bodies they occupied could move.

"Two can play at this game, I think," Jess said through gritted teeth. 

In her mind's eye she grabbed the threads and yanked. The thanes leaped forwards, coming in for the kill, but she knew, instinctively that they had left the bodies behind.

Pain shot through her once more. She closed her eyes against the whirling stars but the things continued to move within her eyelids. She felt Cat Sidhe curl, ready to spring free of her and she held tight, kept him to her. Kept the nine thanes coming. The stars and planets were a blur now, fading into the mist. There was fur beneath her fingers and she hung on, aware of nothing more than the need to prevent the great beast from leaving. She felt its muscles strain beneath her fingers. She was so tired. She clenched her fingers tight but they ached and her arms ached and her mind ached and she was sinking into the fog and the mist and the stars were gone.

Then a golden light surrounded her. She took a deep breath and she felt the strength pour into her lungs and spread out through her body and the great squirming beast seemed to shrink in her arms.

She said in surprise, "Why, you are really only a small cat after all."

She looked down at the black cat with the white mark on its forehead which she clutched close to her breast. 

"Time to throw him out," said a voice.

She looked up to see Graymaulkin walking across the sand towards her. Jenny was following behind him looking damp and bedraggled but still upright and graceful. Jess took Cat Sidhe by the scruff of his neck and threw him as far and as hard as she could.

Reality hit her like a splash of cold water.

"Jess! Jess! Please don't die!"

She blinked her eyes open to realise she was lying in Becker's arms. The ghost of golden dust hovered between their faces.

"Did you just kiss me?" she asked, thinking of the way the gold had spread through her body from her lungs.

"They gave me some kind of potion. It's been on my breath for a while. I couldn't think of anything else to do!" Becker said urgently.

Jess humphed slightly.

"Maybe you should kiss her properly then!" Jess glanced across to see Finn standing nearby, looking completely normal. The rest of the ARC team was gathered all around them together with Donnie, Callum Wells, Phil Watts, Colonel Duncan and Shona. 

"Go on then," she said grinning up at Becker. "I'm fairly sure you get a kiss when you rescue a damsel in distress. Even if the damsel is a big hulking soldier who has mislaid his shirt and tac vest."

Becker glanced up at the people gathered around them and blushed red to his ears, then he leaned down and kissed her again.


End file.
